Field of the Invention
The invention relates a lever-type connector.
Description of the Related Art
Japanese Patent Publication No. 3244034 discloses a lever-type connector that includes a male housing having a hood in which a counterpart female housing can be fit. The male housing has a male terminal fitting with a tab projecting into the hood. A lever is supported swingably at a fitting start position and a fitting completion position with respect to the male housing. Additionally, a moving plate is arranged movably at a tab holding position (moving start position) and a holding canceling position (moving completion position) in the hood. The moving plate has a positioning hole at which the tab of the male terminal fitting is positioned and into which the tab can be inserted so that the distal end of the tab projects through the positioning hole at the tab holding position in a protected state.
Cam pins (cam follower and cam) are disposed on the female housing and a moving plate, respectively. The cam pins are in a coupling state and slide on a groove surface of a cam groove formed in the lever to exert a cam operation in the process of moving the lever from the fitting start position toward the fitting completion position. Thus, a fitting operation between the housings advances. In addition, the moving plate is interlocked with a swinging operation of the lever through the cam pins and moves from the tab holding position to the holding canceling position when fitting the housings. A bendable lance is disposed in the male housing and retains the male terminal fitting.
Although not shown in Japanese Patent Publication No. 3244034, in a normal state, a locking structure hooks and locks the cam pin of the moving plate on edge of the cam groove on a receiving port side (inlet port side) when the lever is at the fitting start position. The locking structure is configured to prevent the moving plate at the tab holding position from dropping out from the hood. However, the male terminal fitting may have to be removed from the housing for maintenance. Thus, the lever must be removed from the housing, and then the moving plate must be detached from the hood. In this state, a jig is caused to act on the lance to bend the lance, and a removing operation of the male terminal fitting must be performed. More specifically, before the detaching operation of the moving plate, the removing operation of the lever must be performed, and therefore the workload is disadvantageously heavy.
A jig insertion hole is formed in the moving plate, and the jig is inserted into the jig insertion hole to act on the lance. In this case, the detaching operation of the moving plate and the removal of the lever need not be performed, thereby solving the problem of the workload. However, the jig insertion hole complicates the structure, and resin fluidity is deteriorated. Accordingly, a shaping property of the moving plate may be deteriorated. In addition, a front retainer may be interposed between the plate surface of the moving plate and the back surface of the hood. Thus, a jig insertion hole must be formed in the front retainer, and the structure becomes further complex.
The invention is completed on the basis of the above circumstance and has as its object to perform a removing operation of a male terminal fitting in a lever-type connector in which a moving plate is interlocked with a lever without removing the lever from a housing.